News
January 10, 2025
Worship Online with Us
If you are unable to attend our Sunday morning worship services in-person, please join us online. We stream both services Sunday mornings live at 9 and 11 a.m. and both are available to watch later if you can’t watch live. We also have many previous services available to watch if you missed one. Please don’t forget to let us know you are watching with the “I’m Here” button at the top of the page.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Pastor David’s Corner
Can’t get enough of Pastor David? You’re in luck! This new section of the newsletter is now known as Pastor David’s corner, and he’ll be able to share his encouragement, thoughts, and announcements with you throughout the week.
Here is this week’s announcement:
Happy New Year! I’m excited to share with you that the theme of “Wonder” will continue into 2025. It’s such a powerful way to approach both the Christmas season and our everyday walk in faith. I’m looking forward to the new series, “The Wonder of Living In Faith Every Day,” and especially the first theme on being “Called.” It’s such a timely and meaningful reminder to live our lives faithfully in response to God’s call. See you all in church on Sunday!
Congregational Prayer Requests
(Please join us in lifting up the following items in prayer!)
PRAYER QUILTS IN THE NARTHEX
A prayer quilt displayed in the Narthex is for Della West. Della is the mother – in – law of Anne Bettis. We invite you to stop, tie a knot, and pray for healing, grace and comfort.
PRAYERS FOR OUR SPECIAL CARE
Shirley Myer, Brenda North, Gerry Oliver, Jean Oliver, Mark Pettit, Mary Price, Bonnie Rheaume, Mary Lou Salyer, Darwin Schultz, Susan Secrest
PRAYERS FOR OUR CHURCHES
Ajo Federated Church, Calvary UMC, and UMC Valley UMC
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
Congregational Celebrations and Praises
(Please join us in praising God for these celebrations!)
WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES (Celebrating 50 or more years of marriage)
Brenda and Jim Unsworth 1/27
SENIOR MILESTONES (Celebrating 80+ birthdays)
Jerry Harbin 1/12
Bev Sutton 1/16
Marjorie Needham 1/17
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Whole – Church Feed My Starving Children Trip
Our high school youth will be partnering with the mission’s committee in leading the church in a special Valentine’s missions project to help spread God’s love and comfort to the world. On February 15th at 2:15 pm, our church will be joining with the high school youth group to package food at Feed My Starving Children, which will be shipped out to help provide meals to impoverished young people globally. If you are interested in joining, please contact the church office for a spot or register online at https://sugeni.us/Vm5j.
(Please remember FMSC has fairly recently moved locations and are now in Tempe at 1100 West Grove Parkway).
_______________________________________________________________________
Committee Bootcamp Event
All former committee members from 2024 and newly appointed members for 2025 are invited to participate in an important orientation session on Saturday, January 25, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
What to Expect:
· Pre-Orientation Materials: Prior to the orientation, members will receive committee descriptions, expectations from the United Methodist Church, and other relevant materials to review.
· Agenda:
o Getting to Know Each Other: A time for introductions and building connections among committee members.
o Strategic Direction: A discussion on the mission and vision of First Church, with a focus on the strategic direction for the upcoming year.
o Prayer for Guidance: A time to seek God’s guidance and blessing as we embark on the work ahead in 2025.
Please mark your calendars and come ready to participate in an engaging and prayerful time together.
_______________________________________________________________________
Faith For Today Class Event Update
“Thursday, members from the Faith for Today class participated in a food meal packing program called Feed My Starving Children. A good time was had by all amid moments for fellowship and sharing the goodness and grace of God.”
[Text on the screen in the photo reads “Session: 2 Hours. Boxes packed:48. Meals: 10,368. Kids fed a daily meal for a year: 28. Cost: $3006.72. tempeinfo@fmsc.org.”]________________________________________________________________________
Iglesia Aliento Invitation
A local Latino church, Iglesia Aliento, has extended an invitation to our church to join them at their worship service at 12:30pm on Sunday February 2nd. After the service, they will have a time of food and fellowship. All are welcome to join in. (701 S 1st St. Phoenix 85004).
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Sunday Social Hour
Please join us for our First Sunday Social Hour Gathering every first Sunday of the month between services at 10 a.m. in Wesley Lounge. The next one will be February 2nd. We look forward to seeing you!
Axios Unaltered (LGBTQ+ Small Group)
Axios Unaltered is our resident queer small group that meets every week here at the church for a time of discussion, Bible study, and prayer, as well as service projects to support the community. If you are LGBTQ+, please join us on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. to connect with other like-minded individuals and grow in your faith. Contact Sammi Burkhart, visit axiosunaltered.com, or search @axiosunaltered on social media for more information.
Young Adult Small Group
This is a small group for anyone in our church 18-40 looking to dive deeper into their faith and connect with other younger people. We meet every Sunday afternoon in room 102 at 3:00pm for a time of community, Bible study, and prayer (and if anyone away at college would like to join in, contact Sammi Burkhart for a Zoom link to participate virtually). Come join us in the book of Romans.
Community Yoga Classes
First Church offers two weekly yoga classes to our community. Classes meet Tuesdays, 9:30 – 10:30 a.m., and Thursdays, 4:30 – 5:30 p.m. The cost is $12 per class or four classes for $40. Email the church office for more information: info@firstchurch.church.
Afternoon Book Group
The Afternoon Book Group meets on the fourth Tuesday of most months at 1:30 p.m. in room 116. We welcome all who love to read and discuss and travel the world through books.
Join the Mission’s Committee
The Missions Committee invites you to join them, supporting and organizing mission projects to serve our community and be transformed in service to God. We meet at 6:30 p.m. on the 2nd Tuesday of the month via Zoom. If interested, please contact Tami Smith.
Business Directory (Attention Business Owners!)
Our church has a business directory for all church members to receive a complimentary listing if they are self-employed, an independent contractor, or a business owner. This will be a classified ad-style listing with one sentence about what you do, including your contact information. This will enable our members to support one another when looking for a business professional. Please email info@firstchurch.church with your information if you would like to be included.
Visit our website https://FirstChurch.church and click on the “Give” button at the top of the home page, or scan the QR code at the bottom of this message with your mobile device for a quick and easy link to the giving page. You can set up a recurring frequency or give when you want to by making a one-time gift using your checking or savings bank account.
You may also give electronically using your bank’s bill pay service.
Another way to give electronically is Text-to-Give with your debit or credit card.
- Enter (888) 303-7535 in your cell phone text messaging program and a dollar amount without including a “$” sign as the message (example: type 20 to give twenty dollars).
- You will receive a reply with a link to enter your contact and debit or credit card information.
- After you complete the registration, you will receive a verification text as well as a receipt by email.
- For future giving, simply send a text message with the amount you wish to give. That’s it!
Check Your Spam and Junk
Sometimes email from our Church’s domain, “.church” isn’t recognized by all email providers. Please check your spam and junk mail folders periodically to see if something from First Church or other senders to your address might be filtered out of your inbox.
